


hand in hand in hand

by Rivani



Category: Chainsaw Man (Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Children, Childhood Friends, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:48:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26788465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rivani/pseuds/Rivani
Summary: Power, Denji, and Aki, and one of many trips to the aquarium.Or;A dream of what could have been.---Inspired by the cover of Chainsaw Man chapter 79 - Catch
Relationships: Denji & Hayakawa Aki & Power
Comments: 12
Kudos: 117





	hand in hand in hand

**Author's Note:**

  * For [chouxxing](https://archiveofourown.org/users/chouxxing/gifts).



> Happy birthday Chou 🎂  
> We may bully you, but you deserve the best.

The doorbell rang. There was a pause, then it rang again. Once, twice, then three times, before cutting off abruptly. 

Socked feet thumped on hardwood as a young boy ran towards the door. He skidded to a halt before throwing the door open and grinning widely.

"You're here!" he cheered. "You're here, you're here!"

On the other side of the doorway, a taller boy had his arms clamped around a little girl's arms, holding her back from pressing the bell again. 

"Denji," the girl cried. "Tell Aki to let me go!" 

"Aki," Denji said dutifully, "let Power go."

Aki sniffed before releasing her. "You're not supposed to press the bell more than once," he told them. "My mom said so."

"He wasn't coming though!" Power retorted, pouting. "That means he didn't hear it."

"I was taking a dump," Denji announced. "So I had to wash my hands."

Both Power and Aki screwed up their noses.

"You don't have to  _ tell _ us that," Power said, disgusted.

"Wait," Aki said. "Do you not normally wash your hands-"

"Denji," a gruff voice cut in. In the hallway behind Denji, a middle-aged man walked towards them before placing his hand on Denji's head. "Don't forget your jacket."

"But Daaaaaaaaaad," Denji whined. "It's not cold today."

"Jacket." His father repeated. "And here, the money for the tickets. There should be enough left over for your lunch. Your bus card is in there too."

Sulking forgotten, Denji beamed. "Pochita!" he cried, collecting the dog-shaped money pouch and hugging it to his chest. 

Denji's father nodded to Power and Aki. "Kids," he greeted. "You're old enough to get there by yourself now, but remember to be careful. Aki, make sure these two don't get into trouble. Your mom will pick you all up at 6 pm."

"Yes, sir," Aki said, puffing up his chest. 

"Okie," Power said, clearly not paying attention. She tugged at Denji's arm. "Let's go already, Denji!" 

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" Denji grabbed his jacket from the coat stand and stepped into his shoes, stomping around until they had slid on properly. 

"I'm going now, Dad," he said, once he was ready.

"Alright, be safe."

"Bye, Denji's dad," the other two children chorused. 

Denji hopped through the doorway and took both Aki and Power's hands, pulling them down the sidewalk. Power tightened her grip and started running and soon, she and Denji were racing each other to the bus stop. Aki, still attached to them, was forced to keep pace. 

They reached the bus pole just as the bus pulled up to the curb. Still laughing and panting, they filed on and collapsed onto the chairs. 

"Hey, hey, Aki," Power said, leaning around Denji to look at Aki. "Do you think we'll make it in time to see them feeding the sharks?"

"I think so," Aki frowned in contemplation. He looked down at the watch velco-strapped around his wrist. A red and blue Ultraman's arms told him that it was currently half past 12. "The website said that they start feeding at 1 o'clock," he said seriously. "It's 12:30 right now, and it takes 15 minutes to get to the aquarium, so…"

"We'll have 20 minutes!" Denji grinned. "Plenty of time."

"15," Aki corrected. "But yes."

"Yeah!" Power punched the air. 

They spent the rest of the trip to the aquarium talking about the exhibits they wanted to visit. At one point, Power and Denji smushed their faces against the window as they tried to figure out how close they were to their destination, and Aki had to yank them down to sit properly. Finally, after what seemed like decades to all three of the children, they arrived at the aquarium. 

It was somewhat busy for a Saturday afternoon; teenagers and adults alike crowded up near the entrance. As their trio joined the line, Power spotted a baby in a stroller and started making faces at it. Not one to be outdone, Denji joined in as the baby laughed and waved its chubby fists. Aki sighed and looked away, a fond smile tugging at his lips despite himself. 

Once they reached the admissions counter, Denji and Aki carefully counted out the money for their tickets as Power jiggled her leg. When they were let through, she threw up her arms and did a little dance before grabbing them again and towing them in the direction of the shark tanks. 

"Come on," she urged. "We're going to be late!"

"We still have ten minutes," Aki said, poking his tongue out the corner of his mouth as he checked his watch. "We can look at the other exhibits in the meantime."

"Yeah, but none of them are as cool as the sharks." Power pouted. 

"Let's go see the jellyfish!" Denji said. He waved his arms up and down.

Power snorted then pointed at him, laughing. "What's that supposed to be?" she asked.

"A jellyfish," Denji declared, repeating the motion. 

After a few seconds, Power did it as well. She and Denji looked at Aki, who sighed then emulated them. The trio broke out in giggles. 

"Jelly, jelly, jellyfish," Power chanted as they moved along the walkway.

"Octo, octo, octopus," Denji said, pointing at a tank where a purple octopus was clinging to a spiraling column of coral. 

"Lion, lion, lionfish," Aki continued. They stopped for a moment to look at the brown and white striped fish. 

"They're poisonous!" Power said gleefully. 

"Venomous," Denji corrected, reading the description below the glass. 

"What's the difference?"

"Poisonous means that they would hurt you if you ate them," Aki explained. "Lionfish are venomous because the toxins are on their spines. So they'll hurt you if you touch them."

"Like your cat," Denji said.

"Nyako would never hurt me!" Power argued, propping her hands on her hips. 

"She scratched me yesterday!" Denji accused.

"She bit me too," Aki stated. 

"I said she wouldn't hurt me," Power sniffed. "I never said anything about you guys. You probably deserved that."

Denji's mouth fell open. "That's so mean," he whined. 

"Don't be mean, Power," Aki scowled. 

Power huffed, then lowered her arms. "Sorry," she apologised, scuffing the floor with one sandled foot.

"It's fine," Denji said, and just like that they were both grinning from ear to ear again as they moved on to the next exhibit.

This one was also a saltwater tank, but much bigger than the previous ones. The glass stretched from the floor to the ceiling, and from wall to the other. Brilliantly coloured fish swam amidst the pillars of coral and friends of seagrass. 

"Oh, oh, picture time!" Denji bounced on the balls of his feet.

"Picture time!" Power cheered, her eyes lighting up. 

Aki took off the camera hanging around his neck and headed over to one of the employees at the side of the room. After a brief conversation, the woman smiled and took the camera. 

The three of them posed in front of the glass. Denji held Power's shoulder with one hand and curved one finger around her left eye with the other as she stuck out her tongue and tucked her arms behind her back. Standing behind them, Aki placed his hand on Power's head and gave Denji bunny ears to match the horns on Power's headband. 

The three children beamed, looking at the camera as the employee raised it up and immortalised the moment in time. It would join the others they had accumulated over years of visits to this aquarium in front of this very tank. 

After checking the picture, they thanked the woman and moved on. 

"Sharks!" 

"Sharks!"

"Sharks!" 

All three of them took up the cry as they hurried to the shark exhibit.

This exhibit was the largest in the aquarium, floor-to-ceiling and metres across. 

It was filled with sharks, big and small, rays, and multitudes of colourful fish and coral. As they watched, entranced, a massive sea turtle passed by. Then came the biggest of all. 

"Whale shark," Power whispered in awe, clutching onto Aki's arm. 

The ripples of light streaming down from above cast blue shadows across their faces as they looked on with wide eyes as the whale shark slowly turned over. 

Even as a diver slowly sank to the bottom of the tank, as an employee began to explain how they fed the sharks, they moved only to blink. Even as the minutes ticked by, they still stood transfixed in front of the glass, their tiny bodies dwarfed by the giants before them. 


End file.
